


Not Alone

by roxyeisen



Series: What Happens Next [6]
Category: The X-Files
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-13
Updated: 2018-04-13
Packaged: 2019-04-22 09:01:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14305308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roxyeisen/pseuds/roxyeisen
Summary: Someone's at the door and they've come for William. But he couldn't have guessed who it is.*Part 6 in my "What Happens Next" series.





	Not Alone

I can feel the heat building inside me. I’m worried about my parents, that they’ll get caught in some crazy crossbeam of my insane powers. 

“They’re here for me. Don’t follow me. Promise me you won’t!” I’m desperate for them to listen to me. They think they can protect me, but they don’t really know me. 

“William, go down in the cellar. We’ll take care of it,” Scully tries to grab my arm and pull me in the other direction as Mulder grabs his gun and heads for the door, but I shake her off. The tremors start and I can feel the pain in my head. Flashes.

My mother cries out and grabs her head.

We can both see the immediate future. If Mulder tries to stop the people on the other side of that door, something happens to him. He ends up in a dead, bloody heap on the landing of the stairs. I can't see why or how, but the result is clear in both of our minds.

“Mulder, no,” Scully gasps and reaches for his arm instead of mine. “You can’t.”

He eyes her, his hand still reaching for the doorknob. “It’s my job, Scully. I have to protect my family. I’m not much of a man otherwise.”

“You’re not much of a man dead, either,” I say, irritated by his antiquated moral code, yet also inspired by it. It’s nice to have someone care about me enough that their own life means nothing in comparison. Like I’ve been thinking, Mulder’s a good dad, whether he gave me his DNA or not. He loves me.

He gives us both another long stare before he finally nods, with plenty of hesitation still in his expression. “William, do not take any chances. If you think they are going to hurt you, don’t hesitate.”

I know what he’s talking about. “I don’t want to be that person anymore.”

He nods. “And that is what makes you special, son. But we want you safe.”

I agree just to get them out of danger. “I’ll be in contact when I can.”

Scully understands. She saw the vision. She saw where they are taking me. And she doesn’t like letting me go. At all. But she has Mulder and her baby to take into consideration. “We will not give up on you, William. We’ll find you. We’ll find a way to make you safe.”

I breathe a soft laugh. “I don’t think that’s possible, Mom. But I love you for thinking it has to be.”

I motion to Mulder to get Mom to a safe hiding place, and he grabs her hand. He stops long enough to grip my arm. The banging on the door gets louder, and I hesitate with fear. I'm sure they aren’t here to help me. They’re here to use me. To take me and experiment on me and learn how to make more of me to fight their wars and further their agendas. 

I won’t let them. If I can infiltrate their facility, I can put a stop to their plans. “This is right, Mulder. Let there be some meaning in my life. I can end the project.”

He sees the wisdom in this, and he finally has some sort of resolution in his expression. “Be careful.”

“Yes, William, please be careful,” Mom says breathlessly, tears on her cheeks. How could I have ever doubted how much she loves me? 

“I will.”

Then Mulder is pulling Scully across the room and down through the cellar door hidden underneath the kitchen floor. When they are hidden, I open the door.

 

“Maddie?” I can’t believe it. I expected soldiers and guns. Not my ex-girlfriend’s annoying kid sister. “What are you doing here?”

Her expression is fierce. I try to read her thoughts and realize I can’t. Did I ever read her thoughts? I’m sure I was able to at some point, or I would have noticed.

“Why can’t I read your thoughts?”

She stares at me with a passive expression. “Where are they?”

“Who?”

She gets irritated. “Where are the FBI agents who think they are your parents?”

I shrug. “I don’t know who you mean. My parents are dead. Murdered in their own home.”

She watches me for a long time, staring at my face like she’s trying to read something there. I figure out she’s trying to read my mind, too. And she can’t. Somehow we’re blocking each other.

“I want you to come with me,” she finally says. “I need your help to end this.”

I don’t trust her. How can I trust someone when I can’t see into their thoughts? “End what?”

“There are others like us. We’re being rounded up. We’re a danger to society, even though they’re the ones who created us.”

I stare at her in shock. “You’re one too? How come I never saw it?”

“It’s not like I advertise it,” she says, curling her lip. “Just come on! They’ve already come to my house tonight. I sneaked out the back but they can’t be far behind me.”

I hesitate. Maybe I should get Mulder and my mom. They have experience with this conspiracy that would be helpful to our cause. But as soon as I have the idea, I reject it. If Maddie is like me, that only puts them in more danger. They aren’t like us. They’re delicate. Mortal. Especially the one growing inside my mother.

“Let’s go,” I say, and we run.

And I should be scared. I should be terrified knowing the job we have to do, especially since I’m pretty sure Maddie is only 14 years old. But I’m not scared at all. A thrill of anticipation courses through me.

I’m not alone anymore.


End file.
